Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, is a rural region located in southeastern Louisiana, 50 miles west of New Orleans and bordering the Gulf of Mexico. From 2012 to 2016, the bulk of opioid overdose deaths occurred in southeastern Louisiana parishes, including Lafourche. Lafourche Parish alone faced a 166 percent increase in overdoses from 2017 to 2021. The state of Louisiana has one of the highest incarceration rates in the United States, and approximately 80 percent of incarcerated individuals have a substance use disorder. While the state was awarded a statewide Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Program (currently known as the Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Use Program [COSSUP]) grant back in 2017 to address criminality and the opioid epidemic, many rural locales in the state did not receive significant aid. Lafourche Parish continues to have a high incidence of opioid overdose deaths with few resources to combat the issue.

Lafourche Parish’s proposed goals for the Building Bridges Planning Initiative are as follows:

• Enhance the partnership between medical staff and correctional staff to ensure that individuals receive needed services.
• Build relationships with community providers of medication-assisted treatment.
• Educate individuals who have criminal justice system involvement about treatment availability and options.